Headman Nkonzo was clutching a hosepipe on level 32 of shaft four at East Driefontein gold mine on Monday when the earth began shaking violently.
The 53-year-old mineworker said all he could think when the rocks began falling was that he was going to die.
”I thought, ‘There is no chance [of] me living, being trapped underground.’ I was scared, it was all too much.”
Nkonzo, who has been a mineworker for more than 30 years, said he was lucky to escape injury when the mine shook earlier in May, killing five of his colleagues.
Monday’s seismic activity at 8.10am left 19 miners injured, three seriously.
The three seriously injured were being treated for broken legs, arms and a broken back.
Nkonzo began his shift at 7.45am and was busy building a support when the quake struck.
”It was shaking for a long time. It felt like an hour,” he said.
He and the rest of his dust-covered colleagues were streaming home, away from the number-four shaft, which has since been closed.
They all looked shaken and did not speak much.
He said he felt good when he reached the surface.
”I am better now,” said Nkonzo.
Joseph Leluma, who was on the same level, said all the miners helped bring their injured colleagues out of the mine and were relieved that nobody had died.
Earlier, trade union Solidarity said: ”Something is fundamentally wrong.”
Spokesperson Chris Pienaar added: ”Seismic activity is normal in mining, but there was one three weeks ago and today we have another one. We call on everyone to get to the bottom of this — contractors, unions, the government and mine owners.”
The union has already requested an extension of a statutory probe into the death of five miners at East Driefontein’s number-two shaft earlier in May, ”to get the whole picture”.
Said Pienaar: ”Everybody must take part — unions, the government, contractors, the mine owners.”
The union has put a formal request to this effect to the Department of Minerals and Energy.
”We need to get to the bottom of why this is happening.”
Pienaar said the psyche of the miners is being adversely affected by all the accidents.
”Because of the rand-dollar factor, a lot of the mines are marginal or are retrenching. The insecurity factor is hanging like a sword over their heads.”
More than 6 000 miners at DRD’s Stilfontein operations in the North West face an uncertain future after the company was placed in liquidation in March.
The liquidation came shortly after two people died at the mine and production dropped by 30% due to shaft closures in rockfalls that also caused damage in the nearby town.
Earlier, Gold Fields spokesperson Willie Jacobsz said the mine is still assessing the impact of the latest tremor.
”There are injuries, but no fatalities. It looks like everyone is accounted for,” he said.
The Council for Geosciences’ preliminary reports show that the seismic activity measured about 3,5 on the Richter scale, with its epicentre being in Carletonville, west of Johannesburg.
Although the tremors were strong, they were milder than originally thought, Dr Andrzej Kijko said.
Other mining groups operating in the area, including Placer Dome, AngloGold Ashanti and DRD, confirmed feeling the tremors but reported no damage or injuries. — Sapa